No Space for Love: A North Korean Defector Story of Love and Survival

(Paperback)

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The year is 2000, and North Koreans are being starved by the Kim regime's practices and recent famines. 17-year-old Seng-il Park and 15-year-old Ha-na Soon are both dying from oppression and starvation. Separately, at different times and under different conditions, they both escape to China. As each would find out, China can be even more dangerous and unforgiving than the dystopia they left behind.
Fifteen-year-old Ha-na longs for her father's love and hopes her escape from North Korea in the late 1990s will mean an end to hunger and hardship. Her hope for a better life in China is destroyed when her father sells her into a marriage where she is subjected to abuse both day and night. With a newborn baby to protect, Ha-na must escape her abusers if she is to have any hope of forging a new path for both her and her child.
All seventeen-year-old Seng-il has ever known is hunger. Forced to flee the famine at the start of the new millennium, he crosses the Chinese border. He soon realizes that this new world has its own dangers. Discovered and returned to his homeland, Seng-il is imprisoned, starved, and beaten to the brink of death. Risking certain death if he is captured again, Seng-il crosses the border once more into the unknown.
In their quest for freedom, these two teenagers both face impossible choices and death. Alike in their need for survival, how far will they go to eat and be safe Will they find true independence or liberty Will they ever know life outside of the shadows and the underbelly of Chinese society Will they ever have space for love and a "real" life
Perfect for readers of Asian fiction, inspirational contemporary fiction, survival stories based on true stories, immigrant stories, and satisfying novels.

Author Bio

Born and raised in Iowa, Ellen Mason grew up in a family and town where things were not always perfect. She was always interested in how people from difficult backgrounds survived and, often, thrived in the world. Ellen went on to obtain her education, get married, and enter the medical world. She remained fascinated with the struggles many Americans, especially immigrants, overcome in their quest for success. As a life and business coach, she met the couple who inspired this gut-wrenching story. Readers can learn more about Ellen at her website www.EllenMason.com or follow her on Facebook, Goodreads, and her mailing list. She enjoys traveling, golf, reading, writing, and fresh and saltwater fishing.